For businesses of all sizes, video conferencing has become part of the daily landscape, both on a one-on-one and on a multi-participant basis. In order for companies to make this easy from their head office, a meeting room space can be refurbished into a video conferencing-enabled space, with all the kit required for someone to book the space and hold a successful meeting with minimal technical hiccups and glitches.
Now, there’s no way we can outline exactly what every type of business might need in order to facilitate this, but we have asked our technical team to suggest some of their recommendations for a larger meeting room setup.
For the purpose of this article, large meeting rooms include any room made to host more than eight physical stakeholders during the meeting. We hope there are some useful takeaways here for you, but as with all technological integrations, you’re likely best off speaking to a professional about your meeting room setup requirements in order to get the best solution.
Software Agnostic Video Conferencing Systems for 8+ Participants
Display
First of all, you’ll want a large enough screen for everyone to see the virtual participants clearly, and to be able to follow and read any presentation slides or shared screens clearly. We recommend not going for a screen under 65” for these reasons.
For this system, we actually recommend the Samsung Flip 2 65”, which will both work as a screen to display participants, and also function as a flipchart with touchscreen technology. Products like these in a modern meeting room space can make a huge impact on the productivity of the meeting, and offer more versatility for the room’s use in general. The Flip can either be wall mounted or installed on a mobile trolley to maneuver around the room for maximum accessibility.
Webcam
For this setup, we reckon a smart device like the Poly Studio X50 will do a stellar job. Its smart webcam offers smart tracking and framing, and its software offers dual display support so you can screen share while remaining in full view right out of the box.
Now, this video bar does come with a built-in microphone and speakers which will be suitable for a smaller meeting space, but to make sure everybody in the room is picked up properly and can hear everything with equal clarity, we do suggest adding an additional microphone and speaker system, like the one below.
Audio system
Everybody knows by now how much frustration bad audio can cause. Whether it’s eliminating the building works noise from next door, failing to have consistent sound during the meeting, or picking up what that one whisper-presenter is actually saying; a good sound system will help everyone keep focused on the subject matter rather than the techno-blips.
For a room of this size, we think a sound solution such as the Shure Table Bundle will make a really good addition. With two table array microphones, distributed across the length of the boardroom table, two speakers that can be either kept mobile or hardwired into the room itself and a processor that takes on all the hard work, every meeting will be an auditory delight.
Wireless Presentation
To enable everyone in the room to share their ideas, Barco’s Clickshare CX50 provides a quick and hassle-free solution. These plug-and-play devices claim to connect anyone’s device to the meeting within 7 seconds, no matter what laptop or video conferencing software is used. It’s probably worth keeping some adaptors in the room just to make the connection as easy as possible.
Room management PC
To make sure the room doesn’t get double booked and meetings are run on time and within schedule, a room management PC like the 8” Roomz Display by RoomzBlack is just the ticket.
You can choose to keep this on the boardroom table itself for easy access, or wall mount it (or even link it to another display outside the meeting room to display availability).
Microsoft Teams Dedicated Video Conferencing System for 8+ Participants
While many of the systems we recommend can remain the same for the software agnostic and the Microsoft Teams dedicated conference rooms, there are a few differences you might want to consider.
Display
As an alternative to the Flip 2 recommended above, you might want to go for a larger, UHD display like the 75” QM75R from Samsung. This can be paired with a smart mount like the Peerless VCM580 floor-to-wall dual display solution, which helps keep cable management ‘manageable’ and also includes two 2RU rack storage units, which can be very handy in a large room with multiple processors, PCs, amps, etc.
Webcam
For a conference room of this size, you might want to choose a dedicated webcam that’s compatible with your Teams Software. the Huddly IQ provides an excellent field of view at 150°, as well as the expected smart zoom, tracking, and framing options that have become standard in conference spaces these days. Its smart AI also takes lighting into consideration and adjusts its settings for each participant, which can be a huge advantage in a large meeting room space with floor-to-ceiling windows. You can opt to use its 5-element microphone, but as before we recommend using a separate sound system for better audio delivery.
Audio System
To offer an alternative for this room size, you could opt for fully ceiling-mounted audio solutions and high levels of calibration and control of the sound in the room as a whole. Consider for example some JBL Pro Control 26C ceiling speakers, powered through a Biamp Tesire Forte Dan VT4 and Apart REVAMP2150L Amplifier, automated through a NETGEAR 24-Port Gigabit Ethernet POE+ Smart Managed Pro Switch allowing fast and easy switching between different inputs from presenters and virtual participants. This is why the mount mentioned in the display section comes in handy, as all of these additional processors, amps, and PCs will need to be stored somewhere convenient.
Single-Brand Video Conferencing System for 8+ Participants
If you think all of the above sounds like a bit of a faff, or you feel loyal to an existing IT brand and want to stick with them, this setup might be more up your street. We’ve chosen Logitec as our primary brand as it is one of the most popular video conferencing suppliers globally, but rest assured that other manufacturers like Poly, Cisco, and Yaelink all have the components required to set up a full video conferencing system as well.
Video and Sound
The Logitec Rally is a really popular system that comes pretty much ready to plug and play. With a stand-alone camera, desk microphone, and two separate speakers included (alongside your expected computing hardware), there’s not much more you would need to get a medium to large size conference room up and running.
If you want to be extra thorough though, you can add more sound solutions such as additional microphones and speakers to create a more surround-sound effect and ensure everyone around the table it picked up perfectly. A Logitec RoomMate will link all chosen devices together and make sure your meetings run smoothly.
Control
The aptly named Logitec Tap can be integrated to control the meeting and other aspects around the room depending on how it’s been integrated with your larger access control systems, and is compatible with Teams and Meet straight out of the box.
Hardware Mounting
Logitec have their own wall mounts to keep the cabling tidy and all the above-mentioned gear in perfect position. It’s called the Rally Mounting Kit and it delivers a really sleek-looking end result.
Other equipment
For displays, other mounting solutions, and more bespoke fitting equipment that blends into your space more, you may have to look out with your chosen brand’s catalogue. Speaking with your AV supplier will help you identify what pieces you definitely need for your large video conferencing room, and which you can do without.
A good supplier will help sound map the room, suggest any required acoustic and lighting treatments that may help you get the best out of your system, and help troubleshoot the setup both after immediate installation as well as resolve problems down the line. With on-site, remote and blended working now routine, creative solutions are needed more than ever. Find out why our integrated workspace technology really is the business.
To find out more about how Hutchi can help support your office with its technological requirements, speak to the team for a direct conversation about your needs.